Editorial | Seek the truth

Sep. 21, 2010

Everyone charged with protecting the citizens of Louisville with a police department that meets the highest standards of competence and integrity — a list that must start with the Mayor and chief of police and extends to the newest officer on the force — should be appalled by recent revelations about the investigation of Detective Crystal Marlowe.

Detective Marlowe, a police officer for 14 years, was stripped of law-enforcement duties and assigned to a temporary job in crime prevention last February, after an assistant Jefferson County attorney questioned several of her arrests. A Public Integrity Unit concluded in an initial investigation of Ms. Marlowe that no criminal conduct was involved, but the police reopened their probe after The Courier-Journal published several stories about her.

The allegations reported by the newspaper were jarring: In 2008 and 2009, Ms. Marlowe had accused at least a dozen defendants — many of them juveniles — of crimes they did not commit. In at least four cases, defendants were in jail at the time of the crimes of which Ms. Marlowe accused them. In other cases, charges rested on positive identifications of suspects that the victims later said they never made.

Nonetheless, the police investigation was closed in May after clearing Ms. Marlowe, and an assistant commonwealth's attorney reviewed the probe and concluded that Ms. Marlowe had not broken the law.

Now, however, a fresh look at the Metro Police investigation by Courier-Journal reporters R.G. Dunlop and Jason Riley, who shared documents from the investigative file with eight criminal-justice authorities, shows that the police inquiry was riddled with factual errors, unsupported conclusions, attempts to shift blame and leading questions that seemed to steer Ms. Marlowe to safer ground. All eight of the experts found the investigation to be deeply flawed. One of the authorities, Victor Kappeler, chairman of the Department of Criminal Justice and Police Studies at Eastern Kentucky University, said he has reviewed hundreds of internal-affairs investigations and hadn't “seen work this shoddy in years.”

Police Chief Robert White won't discuss the case because an administrative review is still pending. Mayor Jerry Abramson said he was “seriously concerned” about previous news reports regarding Ms. Marlowe, but expressed confidence that Chief White will take seriously constructive suggestions for improvement, plans to require additional training for investigators and will review department procedures regarding internal criminal investigations.

That response smacks of an air of “all in good time” that has hovered over this case for months, and it's hard to imagine that Chief White hasn't already taken those steps.

In any case, if Chief White wants a constructive suggestion, the best one comes from several of the experts: Begin the inquiry again with independent investigators.

And this time, it should be conducted with an intensity and a demand for the truth that have been sorely lacking.